A new system of sensors and cameras will aim to streamline weight enforcement along U.S. Highway 20 near Ashton, ID, according to a release from the Idaho Transportation Department.

The permanent weigh-in-motion sensor system will be fully operational in early April, said Bruce King, public information specialist for ITD.

“We do not have a permanent or fixed port of entry on U.S. 20 in Idaho, so having this system in place will alert our officers to focus on truly overweight trucks as flagged by the sensor system,” he said.

The state’s goal is to assist with weight enforcement and improve efficiency for truckers who are properly loaded.

The pilot system consists of loops with sensors embedded in the pavement and of poles with cameras installed on both sides of the loops along the roadway. Data transmitted from the system will be available online to ITD, the Montana Department of Transportation, Idaho State Police and local law enforcement agencies. Inspectors at portable weigh stations in Ashton, Island Park and elsewhere on U.S. 20 will use the information to identify violators.

King said the sensors are physically cut into the asphalt on Highway 20. As trucks roll over the sensors, they record the truck type, axle configuration and weight. Cameras mounted above the sensors can capture the truck’s physical description, as well as tag numbers.

“Our port of entry inspectors would be stationed on either side (of the sensors),” he said. “They would be aware and could pull the vehicle over.”

King said the system does not require truckers to purchase any new or additional technologies. They simply have to drive over the sensors.

ITD awarded Mettler Toledo Inc., of Columbus, Ohio, the $255,354 contract to install the system. King said if the pilot program in Ashton is successful, the state is expected to install the same technology on U.S. Highway 20/26, east of Arco.